Counting sand

I EMPATHIZE with Shakespeare’s Greene who upon realizing the futility of stopping a rebellion against his friend King Richard II remarked, “The task he undertakes, is numbering sands and drinking oceans dry.”

Post-midterms, I dared to think that the media might become less “lamestream” and finally drop coverage of the other Greene – Alvin Greene, the befuddled ex-senate candidate from the great state of South Carolina. Foolish me.

ABC News Senior Washington editor Rick Klein could hardly wait to regurgitate a story from the Free Times (a free weekly in Columba SC). “Avlin Greene: ‘I’m the next president... I was born to be president,’” Klein breathlessly tweeted to the world this morning.

Like ambulance-chasing paparazzi, a Free Times reporter approached Greene in a courthouse hallway as he awaited a hearing on charges that he showed pornographic material to a college girl. Green didn’t want to talk about the indictment. “Write about me running for president,” he requested. “I’m running for president of the United States.”

Greene then launched into this disturbing soliloquy:

“I’m the next president. I’ll be 35 … just before November, so I was born to be president. I’m the man. I’m the man. I’m the man. Greene’s the man. I’m the man. I’m the greatest person ever. I was born to be president. I’m the man, I’m the greatest individual ever.”

Obviously, the poor guy has psychological issues. It’s easy to laugh, but it really isn’t funny. And yet the media insists on having its minstrel show, even if Greene doesn’t know he is in blackface. Shame on the media. It is well past time for this to stop.

But, to paraphrase King Richard’s Greene, this plea is about as futile as counting sand.